Where Not To Wear Your New Google Glass

Yesterday, Google Google kicked off its first big come-one-come-all Glass sale, opening up the future-forward, fashion-backward devices to people beyond the few thousand initially chosen to be beta “Explorers.” By 3 p.m. Tuesday, “Cotton”-color shades had already sold out. Google is now claiming that all the Glass sold out, suspending its sale just after midnight saying that “all the spots had been claimed” — though that tells us little because they never said how many of the $1,500 devices they planned to sell. We don’t know if they sold 500; 5,000; or 50,000.

“ We were getting through our stock faster than we expected, so we decided to shut the store down,” says a Google Glass spokesperson. “While you can still access the site, Glass will be marked as sold out. We are leaving the site open so Explorers can still get any accessories they need.”

Congratulations to the unknown number of new computer-on-your-face technophiles that will soon be walking our streets. (Only those in the U.S. could take part in the sale.) Google already published a Glass etiquette guide. Sample advice: “[Don't] be creepy or rude (aka, a “Glasshole”).” While people are still growing accustomed to cyborgs in their midst, here’s a more practical guide on where not to wear your Glass to avoid bar brawls, robberies, and run-ins with law enforcement. In most of these cases, the Glass wearer didn’t do anything to attract the unwelcome attention beyond wearing a little bit of the future on their nose.

1. Don’t wear your Glass in a movie theater, or you could wind up questioned by Department of Homeland Security agents who might accuse you of illegal filming. Like this guy in Columbus, Ohio. Yes, apparently DHS agents are on the look-out for potential Glass movie pirates everywhere, even in Ohio.

5. Don’t wear your Glass in one of the many Seattle establishments that have banned Glass and then complain about getting kicked out. Like this guy. Or you might wind up as the face for “Portrait of a Glasshole.”

Most of these incidents happened on the West Coast, which means either that people on the East Coast are more accepting of new technology, or, more likely, that there’s a greater concentration of Glass Explorers over here. With more pairs of Glass hitting the street, we’ll certainly see this list expand over the coming months as futuristic Glass-wearers rub mere smartphone-addicts the wrong way. Feel free to send those stories along.